Improvement in water-wheel gates



' To all whom it may concern:

, of the curb. The

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN M. BURGHARDT, OF GREAT HARRINGTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

IMPROVEMENT IN WATER-WHEEL GATES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 137,522, dated April 15, 1873 application filed July 13,1872.

Be it known that I, JOHN M. BURGHARDT, of Great Barrington, in the county of Berkshire and State of Massachusetts, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Water-Wheel Gates, of which the following is a specification:

This invention relates to a mode of dis charging water onto turbine and other waterwheels; and consists in movable chutes or tongues in combination with a circular gate and curb, the construction and arrangement of parts being as hereinafter set forth and described.

- In the accompanying drawing, Figure 1 is a top view of the gate, connected with the curb as when in use. Fig. 2 is a vertical section of Fig. 1 taken on the lineww. Fig. 3is an edge view of a broken section of the wheel, showing the curve of the movable and stationary chutes.

A represents the stationary curb. B is the gate with movable chutes. G is the chute. As these parts are arranged in Figs. 1, 2, and 3, the gate is adapted for what is known as the turbine wheel, with the headof water resting on the curb and gate. The wheel revolves in close proximity to the face D of the curb. E are stationary chutes attached to the curb. The gate is confined by the center F of the curb and rests upon the curb, and receives a rotating motion thereon by means of a rack and pinion applied to its projecting flange G, operated by any of the well-known devices prepared for that purpose. The flange G is a segment which passes beneath the flange K power for operating the gate is applied to this segment-flange. H represents the chute-apertures through the curb.

The movable chute or tongue 0 projects from the plate I of the gate and passes through the water-apertures in the curb, as seen in Fig. 3.

chute O is made to correspond therewith, as

seen in Fig.3. K is the stationary curb-flange, and L is the flange of the gate, and the ends of all the chutes are even therewith.

By this arrangement of the chutes O and E the water is directed to the wheel in unbroken columns, and is brought in direct con tact with ,the buckets. By this arrangement the waterapertnres are made variable, and the gate may be adjusted to discharge more or less, according to the quantity of water or the power required, while the shape of the aperture is not varied. This is an important feature of my invention, as, when the chutes are turned on pivots, the form of the discharge-apertures as well as the size is changed. This gate is adapted to either vertical or horizontal turbine wheels. For vertical wheels the curb A forms the bottom of the pen-stock or flume. For horizontal wheels it forms the ends of the fluine.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent-- The stationarycurb A, having apertures H, chutes E, face D, and center F, combined, as described, with rotary gate having plateIwith movable chutes 0, arranged as and for the pur pose described.

JOHN M. BURGHARDT. Witnesses:

CALVIN R001), BILLINGS PALMER. 

